The Un-Happy Hour: Faking Smiling Leads To More Drinking

Over a decade ago I was 'slinging tacos' at the now-closed franchise of Don Pablo's in Roseville. I have some great memories of working there, it's where I met my now wife and some life-long friends. But a new study out from Penn State and the University of Buffalo states that faking smiling at customers puts you at a greater risk to drink heavily when you get home. It gives us a new meaning to 'service with a smile.'

The study basically says that employees who regularly fake positive emotions (like smiling when inside you couldn’t feel more annoyed) were more likely to engage in heavier drinking after work.

According to a Penn State press release: "...overall, employees who interacted with the public drank more after work than those who did not." It makes sense to me in some ways where a lot of these types of jobs that the study cites, people in food service, nurses, or teachers who work with students, generally are entry-level jobs in some ways more than one, and your potential to earn increases generally if you are more positive with your interactions.

The study went on to say those with one-time interaction with the public, think food industry, over a field where there is more of a lasting relationship with the 'customer' like education had the greater tendency and frequency to drink heavily at home.

The Penn State press release went on to quote Alicia Grandey, professor of psychology at Penn State. She said the results 'suggest that employers may want to reconsider "service with a smile" policies.'